Media furious at MPs’ gag bid
Kenya Editors Guild Chairman Linus Kaikai addresses the press at Nation Centre on October 15, 2015. The Editors Guild, the Kenya Union of Journalists and the Kenya Correspondents Association said a Bill sponsored by Eldas MP Adan Keynan was a mockery of freedom of expression and the right to information. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- The Parliamentary Powers and Privileges Bill was passed by the National Assembly on Wednesday. It outlines the powers or privileges legislators should enjoy.
- The Bill can either go to the Senate for further debate or it can be forwarded to the President for assent.
Journalists on Thursday rejected attempts by Parliament to block scrutiny of its affairs, saying a proposed law violated media freedom.
The Editors Guild, the Kenya Union of Journalists and the Kenya Correspondents Association said a Bill sponsored by Eldas MP Adan Keynan was a mockery of freedom of expression and the right to information.
“The Bill seeks to deprive Kenyans of their right to follow proceedings in Parliament and learn what their representatives are doing. The provisions are draconian and unconstitutional,” said Editors Guild Chairman Linus Kaikai.
The Parliamentary Powers and Privileges Bill, as it is called, was passed by the National Assembly on Wednesday. It outlines the powers or privileges legislators should enjoy.
But the penalties proposed for journalists and the public who “scandalise” Parliament through mainstream or social media have been deemed excessive.
The journalists accused MPs of shunning proposals to amend the clauses.
SENATE ACTION AWAITED
“We find it mischievous and an act of bad faith for the Speaker of the National Assembly and MPs to purport to engage stakeholders for their input and then turn around and ignore their views,” said Mr William Oloo Janak, the chairman of the Kenya Correspondents Association.
The journalists vowed to go to “any lengths to ensure those rights are not taken away by rogue politicians”.
Kenya Union of Journalists Secretary-General Erick Oduor said members would wait to see whether the Senate would amend the controversial clauses.
“If that does not happen, there are various options we will explore to protect the rights of the public to information,” he said.
The Bill can either go to the Senate for further debate or it can be forwarded to the President for his signature.
Under the proposed law, a journalist deemed to have "scandalised" Parliament will be fined Sh500,000 or jailed for two years.
Because there are laws for punishing wayward reporting, the Bill is seen as a tool to scare away journalists from investigating corruption or excesses among MPs.
In the past, MPs have been in the spotlight for controversial salary increases or altering laws to shield themselves.
